My cat Padmé hugging our other cat Velcro.
I am a big time animal lover. If I could have my own zoo or farm I would in a heartbeat. I would love to have an animal sanctuary too and care for animals that are injured, disabled or simply unwanted. Sadly you need $$$ for things like that, which we don’t have.
I grew up with pets. I’ve had fish, hamsters, a horse, dogs, cats, birds and even hermit crabs. I can’t imagine life without a home full of pets.
We have five cats, a dog and some fish. All of them are adopted (except one cat which was a feral kitten we took in) – except the fish.
There are so many wonderful dogs, cats and other animals currently waiting for their “forever home” in animal shelters across the country.
I know that people love to adopt kittens and puppies because they are so cute, but please consider adopting an older pet too. They can give you just as much love as a baby, and they are already housetrained.
If you could find it in your heart to adopt a special needs pet that would be great too. A special needs pet is a pet that requires medication, or might have other health issues like missing limbs, blind, deaf and so forth.
One of our adopted cats, Bella, was originally a kitten we were fostering. We’ve had her since she was one day old. We already had four cats and had no plans on adopting another one, but we fell in love with her and couldn’t imagine not having her as part of our family.
Bella has health issues that we didn’t find out about until many months after we officially adopted her. She has severe asthma that requires a combination of steroid pills and $$$ inhalers. She also has three leaky valves in her heart and was being treated for Thyroid issues (she’s since been removed from that medication). Her vet bills and medications in the course of one year were over $3,000. Can we afford that? Not really, but we some how manage. I often joke that I blog for my pet’s medical needs. I’d have to say at least 75% of the money I make from my blog pays for Bella’s medical expenses as well as our eldest cat, Velcro, who has Diabetes and requires insulin shots twice a day as well as vet visits to check up on him.
I often think about what would have happened to Bella if we had given her back to the shelter to be adopted out to another family. What if that other family couldn’t afford to pay for her health needs? Would they have put her to sleep (something that has been suggested to me in the past and I would NEVER do that!), or would they have given her back to the shelter where she would have likely either spent the rest of her life in a cage (due to her special needs) or put to sleep by the shelter.
There is a reason why she came into our lives. We fostered her sister too who had to be put to sleep at 3 weeks old due to a disease. Had her sister lived we probably would have given both cats to the shelter after we had finished fostering them. There was no way we’d adopt two cats. I think her sister, Emma, died so that she could live.
I am happy to support any program that helps to find animals their forever homes.
This coming weekend PetSmart is hosting a special adoption for National Adoption Weekend.
Don’t spend this Valentine’s Day at home waiting to get swept off your feet. Unconditional love is waiting for you at the PetSmart Charities National Adoption Weekend, sponsored by PetSmart®, from February 14-16 at your local PetSmart store. Whether you are looking for a relaxed, cool cat or a youthful, energetic puppy, you’re bound to find the perfect match.
With more than 2,000 “matchmakers” (animal-welfare organizations) on-site at all 1,300 PetSmart stores in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico, you can easily find the perfect pet to cuddle up with during National Adoption Weekend.
“PetSmart Charities is making a tremendous impact on pet homelessness and individual lives through National Adoption Weekend events,” said Jan Wilkins, executive director of PetSmart Charities, Inc. “We know that adopting pets not only saves their lives, but it makes our lives better, too.”
PetSmart Charities will reward all participating adoption partners; each will receive $35 in adoption-reward grants for every pet adopted during the event. PetSmart, Inc., Purina® Pro Plan® and Tidy Cats® (MAXX Scoop® in Canada) are proud sponsors of National Adoption Weekend.
“By partnering with PetSmart Charities, we’re able to make lifelong matches between thousands of deserving pets and pet parents every National Adoption Weekend,” said David Lenhardt, chief executive officer, PetSmart. “At PetSmart, we know that pets enrich our lives and we’re proud to play a key role in these adoption events.”
If you are looking to add a furry friend into your family, PLEASE consider stopping by your nearest PetSmart store, or local shelter, and adopt.
Don’t forget, there are other pets looking for homes aside from dogs and cats. You can find an assortment of animals at local shelter. We adopted a hamster once. We’ve also seen goats, ferrets, turtles, guinea pigs and even chickens.
On a side note, if you are considering giving a child a bunny for Easter – PLEASE think long and hard about the commitment to the living, breathing creature. If you honestly cannot give it many years of love and care then please consider other options (like a plush animal instead). If you do decide to give a bunny as a gift visit your local animal shelter before you purchase from the pet store. PetFinder.org is a good resource to find animals awaiting adoption in your area.
Kimberly
*I was not compensated for this post. I posted this because I feel strongly about animal adoptions.
The post True Love is Right around the Corner at PetSmart Charities® National Adoption Weekend, February 14-16 appeared first on She Scribes.
